Demountable bulldozer attachment



June 22, 1943. c. D. FORTE I DEMOUNTABLE BULLDOZER ATTACHMENT I Filed July 5, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i Carl 0. Forte June 22, 1943. c. D. FORTE DEMOUNTABLE BULLDOZER ATTACHMENT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 5, 1941 INVENTOR. Car/ 0. Forfe ATTORNEY.

Patented June 22,1943

UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE 2,322,432 a DEMOUNTABLE nvulnoznn A'r'rAonMaN Carl D. Forte, San Diego, Calif.

' Application July 3, 1941, ,Serial No. 401,137

. 4 Claims.

My invention relates to demountable bulldozer attachments, and its objects are to provide a means of increasing the efficiency of bulldozers through the non-slippable attachment to the moldboard thereof of readily removable earth moving equipment; to bring about. a better anchorage of parts and avoidance of displacement thereof under the strainof conditions ordinarily encountered in ground moving work, as well as in unusually heavy work where additional strain is encountered. These and various other important objects and advantages will become apparent as shown in the drawings and as hereinafter set forth and described.

In the bulldozers now in general use throughout the country there is, so far as I am aware no practicable means for positively anchoring to mold boards thereof, detachable devices employed to break up the ground known as rooters." These devices employ heavy teeth that are used to tear up heavy material such as decomposed shale and granite, tough clay, and the like, which might otherwise have to be blasted or broken up with an air hammer. In those cases where unusually hard ground is encountered, it frequently is the practice for the rooter to use but .one tooth, so as to concentrate all effort thereon.

In my improved device, however, these disadvantages have been eliminated, and through the use of my demountable attachment I am able to employ the same apparatus either as a bulldozer or'as a rooter, or to obtain a combined effect 1 tures, and other work where the ordinary type of rooter'is impossible of use. Such work is facilitated by the fact that one or more of my improved attachments can be secured to the bulldozer in such positions as may be found desirable, that is, at or near the right or left side thereof,

or to any place thereinbetween.

commorpto both. So far as I know,'--I.aml.the

first personin the art to devise a demountable attachment for a bulldozer whereby rooter'teeth could be temporarily anchored thereto and practicably used where such teeth could be made effective, or whereby in place of such teeth,.there could be temporarily installed and used spreader boxes, scarifiers, pipe carriers, or other articles adaptable for use with bulldozers. I have also discovered that in order to make such attachmentdevices effective it is not only necessary to make the-samedergigufntable, butalso to provide satisfactory mean firmly to anchor the same againstthepossibility of displacement by reason of the very rough usage to which it is necessarily subjected. v,My invention will be found of par-' ticular advantage, when used with a rooter attachment, to root up pavement or ground which the teeth of an ordinary rooter cannot penetrate; the weight of the bulldozer bearing down upon such attachment causing greater penetration and consequently accomplishing more effective work.

Also with such attachment, a bulldozer could for the same reason be employed with precision for ripping up'shoulders on highways, where ordi-.

nary rooters could not be used; and it could be used to open up the road in advance of such rooters where it is impossible for the tractors Attention is hereby directed to the drawings, illustrating a preferred form of my invention, in which similar numerals of designation refer to similar parts throughout the several views, and in which,

Figure l is a side elevation of my demountable detachment, showing the same secured to the main structure of the bulldozer, some of the parts being shown broken away for the purpose of better illustration;

Fig. 2 is a view of a modification of the top bar of the bulldozer, and adjacent parts, the said bar being shown in section;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the' arrows;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the view shown in Fig. 1, and

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of the double jaw construction of the top portion of my demountable attachment, showing it as secured to the top bar of the bulldozer and adjacent parts.

. Referring to the drawings, the bulldozer I there shown is of the usual construction and has the customary side arms l0 and brace Ii for securing the same to the front of a tractor, by which it is pushed into desired position and operated as required. The front of the moldboard l of said bulldozer is formed with the face Ia, to which is removably secured in the well known way the main cutting edge 8, and also to the sides of said moldboard is aflixed the usual side cutting edges 9. Preferably the saidv moldboard I is a casing of metal and is formed with the extension I2, which is reinforced by the braces l3, soldered to the bottom of said casing (see Figs. 1 and 3). Engaging with said extension l2, and straddling the braces l3, are the heavy metallic fingers 43, which are welded to, or are an integral part of, the arms 42 of the saddle 38. As shown in Fig. 3, the position so taken by the fingers 43 astride the braces l3 and the simultaneous engagement of said fingers with the extension l2, effectually anchors the saddle 38 and the lower part of my attachment against either lateral or longitudinal displacement; the braces l3 preventing sideways movement of the lower end of myfattachment and the extension I: preangular in cross section), which braces are also welded to the adjacent wallof the-housing 44; the interior recess 45 of which is shaped to receive the shank 31 of rooter tooth 3|, removably fastened in said recess by pin 35 engaging with an opening in said shank and one ofthe openings 32, 33 or 34 in the walls of said housing. These openings are for the purpose of elongated adjustment of said rooter tooth 3i, and as is obvious, more of such openings could be provided and further adjustment of said tooth (either as retracted or extended) secured thereby. A cotter key 36 serves removably to secure said pin 35 in place as shown in the drawings. Extending downwardly on opposite sides of housing 44 are the side strips I5 and I So, embracing the.

socket member 45, and secured thereto by the pin 28, passing through openings provided there-,-

for and removably fastened therein by the cotter key 29. An overlapping collar 30, welded to said strips and to the adjacent wall of. said housing, serves to hold said parts firml in position. Within said member, is formed the-lower socket l1, registering with the recess, and the upper socket l6 shaped to receive the shank IQ of the securing member I8.

Preferably, the said securing member 18 is constructed with two locker arms 2| and 22, forming a double hook; the catches and 26 of which are shaped to engage with the top bar 21 of the moldboard. Being widely spaced apart as shown. the said catches firmly hold the head 20 of securing member 18 against lateral or twisting movements and thereby control the direction of application of the rooter tooth to a degree not before experienced with the commercial form of rooter now in common use. Space strips 24 may be used to increase the width of space between the catches, and a tie strip 23 may be added to give greater rigidity to the construction. As shown in Fig. 5, the double hook member I8 is not only affixed to, the top bar 21 of the moldboard by the jaws of the locker arms 2i and 22, (and the top of my attachment thereby secured against any forward or backward movement thereof), but such member l8 and the top of my attachment is also anchored against lateral movement by reason of the arms over the brace I I.

In affixing my demountable bulldozer attachment, I first remove the securing member l8 therefrom by releasing the cotter key 29, and taking out pin 28. I then place the said member in operative position by" engaging the catches 25 and 26 with thetop bar of the moldboard as shown in Fig. 5. Thereupon, the rooter tooth 3| having been adjusted in the desired longitudinal position through use of the pin 35 and cotter key 36,- I engage the fingers 43 with the extension l2, and swing the body of the attachment upwardly so as to engage the shank I 9 of member I! with socket I6, and secure the same therein by means of pin 28 and cotter key 29, and thereby anchor the entire attachment securely in place; the result being that the rooter attachment is firmly anchored and locked from displacement in any straddling of said direction and is as rigid as if made integral with the mold board of the bulldozer, while at the same time it isreadily removable therefrom. For,

if it is desired to demount the attachment, the

shank of the rooter tooth has only to be forced into the ground, through a slight advance of the bulldozer, when if the pin 2! is removed, the bulldozer may be backed away leaving the saidtooth remaining in the ground.

Myinvention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment, as hereinbefore set forth, is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive; the scop of my invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all,

by Letters anchoring the top part of said attachment to.

the top of said moldboard, and to one of said top braces, and detachable saddle means for securing and anchoring the bottom part of said attachment to the bottom of said moldboard and to one of said bottom braces.

2. In bulldozing apparatus, the combination of a frame, a top bar, top and bottom, braces incorporated in said frame, a moldboard mounted upon said frame and located below said top bar, a rooter attachment, detachable double hook means securing and anchoring the upper part of said attachment to the said top bar and astride one of top braces, detachable means securing and anchoring the bottom part of said attachment to the bottom of said moldboard and astride one of said bottom braces, and means for locking said attachment against movement in any direc-l tion after it has been so anchored and secured.

3. In bulldozing apparatus, the combination of a moldboard, top and bottom braces affixed thereto, an extensible rooter attachment, detachable means securing and anchoring the upper part of said attachment directly to the said moldboard and to one of the top braces, detachable means securing and anchoring the'bottom part of said attachment directlyto the bottom of said moldboard andto one of said bottom braces, and means for locking said attachment against movement in any direction after it has been so anchored and secured.

4. In bulldozing apparatus, the combination of a moldboard, top and bottom braces secured thereto, an extensible rooter attachment, detachable double hookmeans securing and anchoring the upper part of said attachment directly to the top of said moldboard and astride one of the top braces, detachable means securing and anchoring the bottom part of said attachment directly to the bottom of said moldboard and astride one of said bottom braces, andmeans for locking said attachment against movement in any direction after it has been'so anchored and secured. CARLD. FORTEQ] 

